In addition to recitals and concerts, plans include exhibitions, workshops, book launches and drama performances for children.
The Chopin Museum in Warsaw has mounted an exhibition of sculptures depicting the composer’s head and bust. The show is on view until August 4 in the newly refurbished ballroom of the Polish capital's Ostrogski Palace, where the museum is located.
From Thursday until March 1, the museum’s concert hall will be hosting daily recitals of Chopin’s music.
On Sunday, February 25, a special event for children is planned, presenting a dramatized history of Chopin’s family and his youthful fascination with music.
Fryderyk Chopin. Image: Biblioteka Narodowa/Polona
A new book by Chopin scholar Piotr Mysłakowski, which brings together reminiscences of the composer by his contemporaries from all walks of life, will be launched on February 29.
The weeklong Chopin celebrations will culminate on March 1 with two concerts by Canadian pianist Eric Guo: a recital at Chopin’s family manor in Żelazowa Wola, some 50 km west of Warsaw, at noon, and an evening concert at the Warsaw Philharmonic Hall.
The anniversary celebrations are spread over eight days because the exact date of Chopin's birth is subject to debate, with his birth and baptism certificates stating February 22, 1810 and family records pointing to March 1 of that year.
(mk/gs)